


red wine & broken hearts

by hoywfiction



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Heartbreak, M/M, Miss you, Oneshot, Post-Break Up, Sad Harry, Sad Louis, Set in the solo era, give it a read and then let me know, i don't know if i should say i'm sorry or you're welcome, larry stylinson - Freeform, post larry, so now
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-14
Updated: 2018-01-14
Packaged: 2019-03-04 18:46:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,880
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13370886
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hoywfiction/pseuds/hoywfiction
Summary: Harry gets an unexpected visit from Louis after months without talking. Needless to say, seeing his ex-boyfriend right before one of his shows is a little emotional.





	red wine & broken hearts

_Maybe I was lying when I told you, "Everything is great, everything is fucking great"._ With his face propped up in one hand the music flowed through Harry's earbuds, playing the familiar tune and forcing the lyrics to bounce around in his skull. Louis may as well have titled the song as his own name, thought Harry as he sat there painting a heart into the table cloth using the glass of wine sitting just in front of him.

The past two years, when he really tried to think back on them, were almost nothing more than a blur. He loved being on tour with his own music, he loved the person he was beginning to become and he loved the type of fans he was becoming known for. He loved being on TV with James Corden, he loved getting questions in interviews about Dunkirk, he loved the rainbow flags people threw at his feet during his shows.

For the first time in his life since he was sixteen years old he felt like himself, but he felt like a version of himself that was missing a few pieces. _Oh how shit changes, we were in love, now we're strangers..._

"Harry?" He looked up from fingerpainting when he heard the voice and the knock at the front of the room. One of the PAs was leaned in the doorway with a headset dangling around her neck, a shy but kind smile on her lips. "You have a visitor."

Who said visitor could be was a range of people, from his sister to a friend to some guy wanting to talk business. Either way he figured he should stop sitting here sulking and letting his heart long for what used to be. He stood up from his chair after removing his earbuds and brushed out the folds in his pink floral suit, the feel of the fabric pleasant beneath his fingertips. He heard footfalls enter the room as he picked off a tiny ball of lint from his blazer, letting it flutter down to the floor. "Hey there, sorry. I was j..."

The last thing he expected was to look up and directly into painfully familiar blue eyes. He felt his blood go cold and he stopped moving, trapped staring at the other man before him as if he couldn't quite believe he was real. The lad shifted from foot to foot, his hands clasped behind his back and seeming more nervous than he had the first time they'd met. "Hi." He eventually broke the silence with a hi.

The urge to respond with _oops_ amused Harry for only a moment before the feeling that took over was only a crushing sense of regret. "You could have told me you were writing a song about us."

Louis scoffed, rolling his eyes and crossing his arms across his chest as he raised an eyebrow at him. "Fuck off. You think I haven't heard _Two Ghosts_?"

For a couple of seconds they stood in silence. Then at the same time they both began to laugh, quiet and breathy and more pained than entertained but it was still laughter. Harry hung his head a moment with a conflicted smirk on his lips. "It's good to see you."

Louis hummed in agreement but furrowed his eyebrows. "Been trying to get in touch for months. You haven't returned any of my calls."

Harry met his eyes just barely, anxiously fixing his sleeves as he responded. "We didn't leave off as friends, Lou..."

"Yeah, I know," Louis mumbled sadly. The air was so thick with tension that it felt suffocating, and it only grew heavier when Harry watched Louis' eyes catch the wine heart smeared onto the table. He gestured to it. "You do that?"

Harry looked at it for a moment then shrugged. "Maybe."

Louis just nodded and yet another silence overtook them. Questions raced through Harry's mind, a few almost bursting past his lips but he held them at bay. He didn't want the answers to them, not really. He wasn't sure he'd be able to handle it. "Why are you here?" he eventually spoke, his voice quiet and feeble with his gaze glued to the floor.

For a heartbeat Louis just stood there with his mouth partially open. He closed it, cleared his throat, then tried for a second time. "I... don't know."

Harry swallowed harshly and nodded his head, looking across the room at the man. Memories washed over him like a tidal wave;

_"I know it's kind of crazy, but I really like you Harry." He could feel his smile growing so wide that it was hurting his cheeks._

_"That's a relief. I think I like you too."_

Harry blinked, a frown tugging down the corner of his lips.

_"This, like this." Louis gently took his hand and formed it into a thumbs up before forming one himself, pressing his knuckles against Harry's before wiggling his thumb. He had a fond smirk on his lips as Harry minicked the motion. "It means sweetheart."_

_Harry looked up at him before breaking into a smile, lifting both his hands and pressing a thumbs up against either side of Louis' face. He laughed harder than made sense, but he seemed so happy. "Sweetheart," Harry repeated._

He could feel the burning of tears in his eyes and he mentally willed himself to keep them from falling, shaking his head and looking down at the stained heart on the white sheet.

"Harry...?" Louis asked, sounding both concerned and scared over what he was thinking about.

_"I love you." The words felt warm when they were kissed into his skin. They were new, this was the first time Harry had ever heard him say them, but they weren't shocking. It felt normal... It felt right._

_"I love you too," Harry said sleepily, smiling as Louis cuddled up more securely against his back. The soft morning light continued to bathe them and urge them awake, but they stayed there in the mess of hotel blankets listening to the sound of one another's breaths for hours._

Without a word Harry drank some of the wine, saving just enough to pour over the heart without making a huge mess. It vanished into a collection of crimson splotches as the table cloth absorbed the liquid, and Harry walked towards Louis with a purpose. He threw his arms around the smaller lad and the embrace was returned, but it didn't feel like home. Not like it used to.

"I'm proud of you," Harry breathed out. As he let Louis go and took a step back to look at him there was water in his eyes as well.

"I..." Louis paused for a long while before hanging his head. Though it sent a sharp pain through his chest Harry nodded and finally dropped his hand from his upper arm, skirting around him and leaving for sound check without another word.

For a few minutes Louis just stood there staring at his feet. Once he felt like he was in his own body again he walked around Harry's dressing room, attention drawn to the mirror. There was a single picture tucked in the frame near the top right corner, a picture from about five years ago when they'd all gone out for Liam's birthday of all of them. He remembered how invincible they'd felt that day, how on top of the world they convinced themselves they all were.

Slowly his eyes drifted down to the accessories scattered around the vanity, and his heart skipped a beat as his gaze fell upon a particular ring sitting atop a box.

_"I'm going to marry you one day." Louis let his thumb brush over the back of Harry's hand as they were cuddled up on the sofa watching Grease for the dozenth time._

_"You are?" Harry asked playfully, his head nestled against Louis' chest. "When'll you do that?"_

_"I don't know," Louis replied casually. He felt Harry's eyes on him as he fished something from his pocket, and the smile on his face when he held up the ring he'd bought made this so worthwhile. "I can't technically propose because of Management, but I still wanted to see you wear one."_

_"Like a promise ring?" Harry asked as Louis gently took his left hand, sliding the metallic black band onto his finger._

_"Exactly. I promise I'll marry you someday."_

He blinked and stared at his reflection, comparing it to the photo pinned to the surface. They were all such different people now... and he couldn't tell if he liked it or not. Feeling sick to his stomach Louis fell back into the chair at the table, noticing as he did that Harry had left his phone behind. After debating in his head whether or not he should he put one earbud in and pressed play with the tiny control bar on the right wire.

 _Should be laughing but there's something wrong, and it hits me when the lights go on... Shit, maybe I miss you._ With a choked sound he rested his elbow on the table and hung his head in his hand, rubbing his temples with his thumb and forefinger as he closed his eyelids. "I'm so fuckin' sorry," he whispered to the person who was no longer here, the overwhelming urge to break down into tears slamming into him at full force.

_"DO YOU THINK I'M NOT JUST AS TIRED OF THIS!?" Harry screamed across the living room, throwing his arms out at his sides._

_"AT LEAST I DON'T HAVE A PLAYER'S REPUTATION!" Louis shouted in return as he slammed his palms flat on the counter, rage boiling in his stomach._

_"WELL YOU... You..." He looked up in confusion as Harry's tone changed, only more confused when he found his boyfriend staring at him with a soft smile on his lips. Louis dropped his arms back at his sides._

_"Harry?" he asked quietly, trailing him as the taller lad came over to him and placed his hands on his hips._

_"I love you," he said as he looked down at him._

_"I..." Louis couldn't help it, he smiled. "I love you."_

_Just like that they wrapped their arms around one another, and their aggression faded away until it was gone. Through the fights and the struggles this was what made them stick it out, the pure feeling of adoration they held for one another. As Louis took in his scent and relished in the feeling of his fingers trailing up and down the small of his back there was only one thing he knew for sure: He was never letting him go._

"We're not who we used to be, we're not who we used to be..." Harry stared out at the empty stadium as he strummed his chords and sang the words. But his fingers seemed to stop working and his voice died, leaving him gazing out at vacant chairs in the silence. He heard someone from the sound crew ask if everything was alright but the question didn't process. Letting out a shaky breath Harry wrapped a hand around the microphone base, resting his head against the top and squeezing his eyes shut like this were a nightmare he could force himself awake from.

"Shit..."


End file.
